Beautiful
by TheMortition
Summary: Avery is a young proxy of Slenderman's who was sent to meet an old friend of his. That friend happened to be Jeff the Killer and he did more than meet him. They nearly killed each other. However, Jeff thinks he can help Avery become better by training with him. The only problem is Jeff aggravates Avery. Rated T for cursing and violence.
1. Strange Request

Okay, this is my first creepypasta fanfiction. If it's complete shit, I'm sorry I disappoint you. If not, then enjoy.

**DISCLAIMER:** I obviously don't own Jeff the Killer, Slenderman, or any of the other creepypastas mentioned in this fanfiction. The only ones I own are Avery, the random people described/presented through the story, and an extra proxy you'll come to know as Medic. Other than that, I own nothing else in this fanfiction.

**WARNING:** This contains yaoi, shounen ai, violence (whether it's graphic or disturbing, you'll be the judge of that), and possible OCCness. If you don't like any of these things, don't read. If you do, enjoy.

**EXTRA WARNING:** If you hate Gary Stues (the female version of a Mary Sue) you will be a little annoyed during the first part of this chapter. Please bear with me. You'll understand why as you read through the chapter. Also, it's been a while since I watched Marble Hornets so if I get some of the settings messed up, I'm sorry. Point it out to me and I will fix it.

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Two minutes before the final bell rings, students anxiously watch the clock in their Chemistry classroom to tell them it's time to leave. Their middle-aged teacher drawls on about a new theory he introduced to them an hour earlier. It's evident on most of their faces that they could really care less for what the man was telling them. The information was either tuned out or passing over their heads. Of course, there were a handful of students eager to listen to their teacher and instinctively took notes over everything he said. One of whom was a boy at the very front who dressed quite nicely for a 17-year-old. His white dress shirt was rarely unbuttoned, his black tie always knotted tightly to his neck. Always he wore black trousers and a red sweater or coat during the fall and winter seasons.

This student was named Avery. He was a close favourite to most teachers because he always did his homework, took notes during class, and almost always completed an assignment on time. Such diligence and effort earned him excellent grades and kind little notes on some of his papers. His teachers knew his parents were very proud of him and expected great things of him in the future.

Although Avery often had his nose buried in a book or a class assignment in front of him, he had a very decent social life. He wasn't popular like the jocks and cheerleaders but he had many friends at school. It was mainly due to his warm smile and need to help out those who struggled that made him approachable. Avery never met a stranger, always making friends with those he first meets. There was an air about him that made people around him want to speak with him.

However, with such an abundance of friends around him, Avery often refused to hang out or do anything with his classmates. He would tell them that he had to study for a test in one of his classes or there was a lot of homework he needed to complete. Even on weekends or holidays, Avery was rarely seen in town. His friends assumed the teenager was cooped up in his room, studying or reading up on one of his favourite novels.

The bell finally rang, interrupting the Chemistry teacher mid-sentence. He informed the class that they would continue the lesson the following day, his words not reaching the students as they rushed out of the room. Avery sat in his desk and patiently put his notes away before exiting the classroom.

As soon as he walked out of the building, a boy with brown, shoulder-length hair ran up to Avery. He wore a navy blue long-sleeved shirt underneath a grey T-shirt and a pair of faded blue jeans. Avery smiled at seeing his good friend, Trevor. They didn't have but one or two classes together so they only had before and after school to talk.

"Hey, did you get Mr. Guiles's notes today?" Trevor asked.

"Of course!" Avery answered cheerfully, "Do you need to copy them down tonight?"

"Yeah..." Trevor gave him a sheepish grin. "If you don't mind..."

"Don't worry about it! I'd be happy to lend you my notes! Just return them tomorrow morning so I can finish the rest."

"There's more?"

"Yes. Didn't you hear Mr. Guiles say we had to continue them tomorrow?"

Trevor groaned, the thought of writing so much about Chemistry ruining his good mood. Avery gave him a sympathetic grin and pushed a lock of his dark hair out of his face before pulling out his notes.

The two walked home together, chatting about the day's events. Besides an update on a rumor that a freshman was possibly pregnant, not much had happened that day. They soon approached the street Trevor lived on, Avery departing from his friend to walk across the road.

Unlike many of his classmates, Avery didn't live within his small town. From what he had described, he lived near the woods that surrounded their town. Since Avery never bothered to bring guests over, none of his classmates ever tried looking for his house. There was also no use in calling him since he never carried a cell phone or gave anyone the number to his house phone.

There was very little Avery's classmates knew about his home life. The only thing they could get out of him was that he lived with his father, who won custody over him after his parents divorced. After the divorce, he never saw his mother again. He eventually got over this and accepted that some families don't always stay together. He also mentioned having several cousins that often came over.

Although Avery always has a smile on his face and represents every teacher's dream student, there was more to him than what anyone could possibly imagine. Not one of his teachers or classmates could fathom what Avery was really like once he left school and entered Rosswood Park.

As he calmly walked to the rear of the park, his soft smile slowly melted into a hard frown. His pale brown eyes that seemed to be full of happiness narrowed in annoyance. To anyone that passed by, they could clearly tell that the teenager was irritated.

"Fucking slacker," Avery muttered to himself. His voice, normally sweet and gentle when around his classmates, was now bitter. "The only reason you approached me was for my damn notes. You were too busy day dreaming to write down your own mediocre shit."

Avery never liked Trevor. He didn't like anyone, to be honest. Whether it was the teachers, students, his own friends, or even a citizen of the town he resided in, Avery despised everyone. There were many reasons why he hated people, the main one being because they were humans. For as long as he could remember, Avery's always hated the human race and always blamed the world's problems on them. Even though he too is a human, he hates the fact that he was born into this race.

Avery stepped into the woods at the rear of Rosswood Park and walked along one of its many trails. Not very many of his classmates came to this part of the park. On most days, it was the occasional jogger that Avery would see on his walk. He never worried over getting lost in the woods despite the poor maintenance of the trails. He had remembered each by heart, taking note over which one will lead him around in circles, or take him back to the park.

After about fifteen minutes of walking, Avery stepped off the trails and went behind some trees. He made sure there was no one around before making his way to a white tunnel. It seemed so random sitting off away from the trail. Most people overlooked it due to the trees and thick bushes along the trail. It was a very curious thing that made some want to venture closer to it. However, very few ever saw what was on the other side.

Again, Avery looked around cautiously before stepping into the tunnel. As he made it halfway through, a dark aura began to slowly creep up on him. What would normally send most running in the other direction barely fazed Avery. It's a tingling feeling he's more than used to by now.

Avery exited the tunnel and continued walking forward into a group of trees. After stepping around them, he came to what he could describe as his home. It was a big house that was painted grey with shingles a much darker shade of grey. Inside were many rooms, most belonging to the residents of the house. Several trees grew around or even onto the house, always looking dead whether it was spring or autumn.

As you may have guessed, Avery and his father weren't the only ones living in the house. And, you may have realized, there was more to Avery's private life than he made his classmates believe.

For starters, Avery doesn't have parents. Not anymore, at least. Nothing bad happened to them either except that they no longer have Avery to claim as their son. The reason being was because Avery was forced to serve under the creature that killed his older brother. After watching the thing destroy his sibling until he was unrecognizable, Avery had pleaded with it to not do the same to him. One of his pleas was that he would do anything the creature wanted him to, even if he didn't like it. It eventually decided to test Avery out to see if he would live up to his word.

Now, seven years later, Avery is a loyal proxy to the being known as Slenderman. He did live up to his words and obeyed Slenderman's every command. He terrorized random citizens in his town, helped lure small children into the woods, and killed those who Slender believed needed to perish. All these things were uncomfortable to him in the beginning but he gradually became used to such orders.

However, despite Avery's undying loyalty to Slenderman, he was still very much afraid of his master. He had seen the things Slender would do when provoked and hoped to never give him a reason to be angry with him. Avery, as well as any proxy, knows full well that his master can get rid of him just because he feels like it. So, to ensure that he at least doesn't give a reason for his master to kill him, Avery does everything Slenderman tells him.

Even though Avery has a strong hatred for humans, he gets along fairly well with the other proxies. It's partly due to them being in the same situation as him. Almost everyone who follows Slenderman had either been specifically chosen or forced in some way to become his proxy. A very selected few had willingly joined him because they felt their skills would benefit him in some way, or wouldn't put up much of a fight when asked.

While serving under Slender, he can decide whether to keep you "awake" or "asleep." Meaning, if he feels you've served your purpose at the moment, he'll let you be your regular, oblivious self until he needs you again. This often leads to extreme confusion because of the time-lapse between you becoming a proxy, and then reverting back to your regular self. This happens to about half of the proxies Slender controls. Avery is always "awake" due to being forced to live with his master and because he can manage to pull off his double life.

Avery walked through the front door and removed his brown dress shoes before ascending the stairs. It wasn't a necessity for the proxies to remove their shoes at the door. Avery did this to make sure he didn't accidentally wear the same shoes for when Slenderman asks him to do something. He makes sure to change all of his clothes before going out to do Slender's bidding. Avery's every day clothes are way too distinctive and would automatically make him recognizable to those that know him. So, like most of the proxies, he changes into a hoodie and a pair of jeans before heading out. He also has his own mask which looks like a black but simplified version of the theatre mask representing comedy. He chose this to represent his deception in everyday life. This sometimes attracts puns from the other proxies who say that he really does "kill others with a smile."

Finally reaching his room, Avery set his shoes down at the foot of his bed and began taking out his homework. Though most teenagers would relax a little before starting on their homework, Avery wanted to get it over with. He felt at times that his school assignments were very tedious and unnecessary. Slenderman had insisted that Avery do his best to get an education and maintain some form of normalcy to the public. It was Avery's idea to be an over achiever. He thought that if he could gain the trust of his teachers, they would less likely see him as a threat to anyone.

Tonight, Avery didn't have as much homework that needed to be done. This gave him a feeling of satisfaction as he carefully put his assignments in his backpack. Now he had the rest of the afternoon to himself until Slenderman told him to do something. He pulled out one of his favourite books from his small shelf on the wall and laid in a comfortable position on his bed. He wanted to continue reading _1984 _before anyone decided to interrupt him. Unlike the act he plays at school, Avery is not a very social person and often shuts himself up in his room until supper.

An hour later, the familiar dark aura Avery felt in the tunnel returns to him. He doesn't have to think too hard on what it is as he sits up and turns around to see Slenderman. The creature's blank face stares calmly at Avery's attentive expression as the proxy stands before his master. The boy's posture is stiff but straight like a soldier presenting himself in front of his commander.

"Assistant," Slenderman says in calm yet chilling voice. "Assistant" is Avery's name as a proxy. It was given to him based on the behaviour he displayed while working with another proxy named Medic. Medic is a proxy that tends to everyone's medical issues. He's an elderly man with white hair and dull green eyes. He often wears a lab coat to signify his status as the doctor of the household. He also wears a pair of silver rimmed glasses due to his fading vision.

During Avery's training to become a proxy, he would find himself in Medic's room from time to time. The training was usually very grueling so it wasn't uncommon to receive some cuts and bruises from it. Sometimes the cuts would be a little too deep or the proxy-in-training would receive a concussion. They would have to be sent to Medic's room (which doubles as both a medical room and his bedroom) to be treated for their injuries.

Avery had been fascinated by the proxy's abilities and position as a doctor that he started watching him from a distance. He eventually decided to ask if he could help Medic out when tending to the injured proxies. At first, Medic thought that Avery would've been a hassle since he was only 12 at the time. He eventually decided to try him out by giving him small tasks to complete. He slowly began to see that Avery wasn't troublesome and was very serious about helping him. He soon gave Avery bigger tasks and eventually allowed him to help out in healing the other proxies. Slenderman came to see that they worked pretty well with each other and established them as partners, hence why Avery was given the name Assistant.

"Yes, Master," Avery said in an equally calm voice with a hint of intimidation.

"I have an assignment that I feel only you can handle. Are you prepared to face this task?" It's not so much of a question than it is a statement. You are expected to say yes even if you have doubts that you can't fulfill his request. Saying no doesn't do anything drastic but let's Slender know that you require more training to be efficient. Regardless of how you think you are as a proxy, saying yes would be the better answer.

"Yes, Master. I am prepared for whatever task you have for me."

"Go to where the trails begin near the woods. I want you to meet someone there."

"May I ask who it is I'll be meeting, sir?"

"He's an ally. However he's not what you'll expect."

"He's not a proxy, sir?"

"No."

"How will I be able to identify him, Master?"

"He looks very suspicious. You won't have a hard time identifying him."

"All right, sir. Is there anything specific you want me to do once we meet?"

"Yes. Act as though you haven't had any sleep for a while. If he doesn't ask if you're tired, let him know you are."

"Is that all, Master?"

"Yes. You don't need to disguise yourself tonight. It's not necessary this time."

"Yes, Master."

As soon as Slender finished talking to Avery, he teleported out of the room. Avery, not wanting to make his master impatient, slipped on his dress shoes and grabbed his book. He assumed that Slender wanted him to appear like the friendlier version of himself. So, he decided to make himself look less suspicious by pretending to read under a tree.

Avery jogged to his destination, going through the tunnel and along the trails before it became too dark. Though the house itself was masked by trees, Slenderman wanted to make sure no one would stumble upon his home by accident. To solve this issue, he placed a barrier around the area of the house that extended to the tunnel. Most people have a hard time going through the tunnel, whether it be from the negative aura near the end or Slenderman disabling anyone from getting very far. However, if anyone succeeded in getting through the tunnel or were around any other part of the barrier, they will find themselves lost in the forest and possibly far from the trails.

Avery made it to the beginning of the trail with enough sunlight to last for another thirty minutes. He sat down beneath a tree and opened his book to a random page. As Slender had instructed him to do, Avery made himself appear as though he were extremely tired. He would nod off, hang his head, or let his arm or leg slowly drop to show that he was drifting in and out of sleep.

Though Avery blindly follows Slender's orders without asking unnecessary questions, he still becomes suspicious with some of his master's requests. Sometimes Slenderman was vague about an order because it meant something interesting was going to happen. Interesting could range anywhere to something incredible to something tragic. Either way, no matter how odd it sounds, an order is an order.

Thirty-five minutes had passed and it was becoming steadily darker. Avery had watched from the corners of his eyes for anyone suspicious. All he saw were the usual citizens walking around or going back into their cars to return home. By now, there were no vehicles in the parking lot, leaving the rear of Rosswood Park empty. Despite it becoming darker by the minute, Avery remained by the tree and continued to act as though he was very tired.

Then, as he fluttered his eyes open, he noticed someone walking toward the trails. It wasn't very dark, allowing Avery to see the figure's description. All he could make out was that the person wore a white hoodie with the hood up, a pair of black pants, and what looked like long black hair covering their face. Judging by the figure's body structure, this was a male.

_That must be him,_ Avery thought as he rubbed his eyes, _He looks very suspicious and I've never seen him before._

The man walked closer to the trail, his hands remaining in his hoodie pockets and his head down. Avery waited until he was several feet away before getting his attention.

"Oh, wow. Is it dark already?"

The man stopped and looked over at Avery as he yawned. He watched as Avery looked around before suddenly acknowledging his presence.

"Hey, do you know what time it is?" Avery asked, making himself sound almost completely oblivious to the fact that it was a little past dusk.

"It just became dark," the man said in a low voice.

"Great. My parents are going to kill me."

Avery swore he could hear the smirk in the man's voice as he asked, "Have you not been sleeping very well?"

"No. Not really. My school work tends to keep me up at night." Avery emphasized this with a loud yawn.

"You know what'll help?"

"What?"

"If you would simply go... to... SLEEP!"

Before Avery could react to the sudden, odd deepness to the man's voice, he saw something shine for a moment and quickly come towards his face.


	2. Surprising Opponent

Avery was sent by Slenderman to meet an ally of his. When he thinks he's spotted him, the man attacks him. However, Avery won't go down so easily. Not without a fight, at least.

Honestly, I can't say whether or not the violence in this chapter is considered mature. I don't find it too disturbing but, then again, not much disturbs me. But, there's a lot of bloodshed in this chapter so, if you're hemaphobic, squeamish, or grossed out by blood, you may not want to read most of this chapter.

Enjoy everyone!

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Reacting quickly, Avery pulled his book up to his face as the man's weapon lodged itself in it. Avery saw as the sharp blade of a knife penetrated through the spine of his book.

_Shit! This is bad! I didn't think I'd have to fight this guy!_

Avery pushed his book, as well as the man's knife, aside and quickly got up to run into the woods. The man immediately pulled the book off his knife and shoved it to the ground before chasing after Avery. Avery heard the man's footsteps coming up close behind him. He thrust his hand into his trouser pocket to pull out his own weapon: a scalpel.

Some proxies have their own signature weapon, others use what's available at the moment. Although some believe that the scalpel was given to Avery as a gift from Medic, it was actually stolen from his Biology class years before. He snatched it out of his tray while the other students were cleaning up. After his lab partners noticed it gone, Avery told them he may have accidentally thrown it away along with their dissection. His teacher didn't get too mad at him since Avery acted as though he was really guilty about it. No one ever caught onto this so Avery was never found out.

_Sorry, Master. I may have to kill him or else never make it back to the house alive._

Avery turned around and slashed at the man as he came closer. He had managed to rip the sleeve of his hoodie but let the man know that he won't go down without a fight. Avery wasn't going to give anyone the satisfaction of killing him without landing a few cuts here and there.

He bearly noticed the man smirk as he chuckled deeply at Avery's attack.

"A victim that fights back..." his voice was still deep but sounded slightly crazed to Avery. "Finally, something different for a change."

"Consider addressing me as something else. I will not be your victim tonight."

Avery raised his scalpel to attack but the man caught his wrist with his left hand. He chuckled and aimed his knife at Avery's side.

"Too bad. I've already decided that you'll be the cure for my blood lust tonight."

He swung the blade down at Avery's side, expecting it to tear through his red jumper to his flesh. His hand was instead caught by Avery's left. He could faintly see blood running down the teen's thumb as he tried to push the knife away from him.

Avery kicked his attacker in the shin, allowing him to break away as the man reacted to the blow. This gave Avery the opportunity to lunge at him and stab his shoulder. He heard the man let out a groan, surprising Avery. Normally, he would expect a loud scream from such an attack.

Still shocked by the reaction, Avery was too distracted to see the man raise his knife and bring it down on Avery's left side. He was able to land a hit this time but only grazed the skin. It was still affective enough to cause Avery to yelp out in pain. That much alone seemed satisfying to him as he saw that his knife had a fresh coating of blood on it.

Returning to the situation at hand, Avery pushed himself away from the man before quickly slashing at his neck. He could tell by the way the tip of his scalpel glided across the man's pale neck that it wasn't going to be a deep cut. With very little blood leaking out, it wouldn't become life threatening any time soon.

Once again, the man laughed as Avery's scalpel grazed his neck. He was shocked once more at how he reacted compared to the usual victims he handled. He was starting to suspect that there was more to this man than he let on.

"What are you?" Avery demanded. He was answered with a laugh much louder than before.

"I asked what the fuck you are, you bastard!"

Avery ran to him and embedded his scalpel into the man's stomach. There was a groan but more laughter followed.

The man spit out a droplet of blood before speaking, "You think I'll be shaken by a puny knife like yours?"

The man raised his head and slowly removed his hood. What Avery saw surprised him but didn't disturb him. Upon the man's pure white face was a Glasgow Smile. There was no skin connected to the opened wounds, appearing to have healed without proper medical treatment. His eyes also seemed to have gone through some sort of damage. They were lined with something that appeared dry and black. Avery couldn't tell what it was as the man raised his knife to stab again. Avery pulled out his scalpel and backed away before he could receive any damage.

"My dad's beatings from his belt hurt worse than this," the scarred man taunted, encouraging Avery to come forward and slash at him again. He was able to cut through the hoodie and drag his scalpel along the man's chest this time. However, this gave the man a chance to run his blade down the side of Avery's neck to his shoulder. Unlike Avery's attack, the man was able to cut deep into the teen's neck. It wasn't enough to worry about but there was a bigger amount of blood pouring out of his neck.

Avery retaliated by stabbing into the right side of the man's chest.

"I see why he would beat you. A disgusting face like that would give anyone enough reason to attack you."

"Disgusting?"

The man grabbed Avery's neck and plunged the knife into his left arm. Avery let out a scream as he felt the blade brush up against his bone.

"You wouldn't know what true beauty was if it stabbed you in the face."

Avery took that as a sign to break away. The man removed his knife and quickly tried to stab at Avery's face. The teenager suddenly dropped down into a crouching position and brought his scalpel down on the man's foot roughly. The man reacted by growling and kneeing Avery in the face. Avery fell backwards onto the ground, placing a hand over his nose as he felt blood spill from it.

Before Avery could get up, the man was on top of him. He pinned Avery's wrists to the ground and watched as the boy squirmed beneath him. He carefully brought both wrists together and used one hand to tightly press them into the earth floor. With the other hand, he picked up his knife and brought it to Avery's face. He traced the blade along Avery's cheeks, lips, and neck before pressing the blade to his Adam's apple.

"Well, kid," the man chuckled, "This was really fun. Too bad we can't do this forever. Human life is so fragile." Avery remained quiet as he stared into the eyes of his attacker. "But, I'm going to have to end it now. You know my face. We can't have you running to the cops about me, now can we?"

"As if they actually help with anything."

This made the man chuckle, his carved smile making him appear more menacing.

"How amusing. Are you already giving in?"

"No."

Avery raised his knee up to hit the man's groin. This gave Avery a satisfying reaction as the man toppled over in pain. He sat up and retrieved his scalpel before stomping his foot on the man's chest.

"This is where you went wrong," Avery stated, a small smirk on his face as he realized he had control now. "When you are attacking someone and you decide to get on top of them, don't ever straddle them. Especially if you're a guy."

"Good advice, kid."

"It's a shame you'll never use it."

"I beg to differ."

"Excuse me?"

Before Avery could react, the man grabbed the teen's leg and cut the back of his ankle with the knife. Avery moved his leg off the man's chest and knelt down to compress the wound. He was fortunate that the man didn't cut deeply into his tendon. That would've made his situation more difficult than it already is.

"And this is where you went wrong," the man mocked Avery with his own words. "Make sure the person you're attacking doesn't have anything to fight back with."

Avery looked up to see what the man's next move would be and was nearly slashed in the face by the knife. He leaned backwards and quickly, but awkwardly, got up. The man rushed at Avery, his knife quickly stabbing at different spots on Avery's body. Avery was able to dodge most of the attacks but still received a few cuts to his arms and sides.

Avery was trying to be aware of his surroundings while the man attacked him. But, due to him backing up to avoid being stabbed, Avery didn't realize he was heading towards a tree until his back was pressed up against the rough bark. The man, seeing his victim trapped, tried to stab at Avery's face again. Avery was able to move his head before the knife could nick his cheek, forcing the man to embed his knife into the tree.

He tried to stab the man in the side again, seeing as he was disarmed. The man was able to catch Avery's hand again but used the boy's weapon against him. He was able to twist Avery's hand to where the scalpel pointed to his stomach. He then forced the teen's hand forward and pushed the scalpel into his stomach. The blade penetrated Avery's flesh, causing him to suck in a breath and groan.

Next to the scalpel in his stomach, escape wasn't going to be easy. The man kept his grip on Avery's wrist as he forced his arm against the teen's chest, pressing him further into the tree. Besides the discomfort of having his chest compressed, being trapped between a crazed man and a tree irritated Avery.

"You're a very persistent little bitch, you know that?" the man breathed in Avery's face, his hot breath snaking over the teen's chilled skin.

"I suppose I am," Avery spat back.

"Such a smartass."

The man rocked the knife back and forth, easing it out of the tree. As he did this, he and Avery stared intently at each other, waiting to see what the other would do. Avery glanced down at the cut he left on the man's neck. A thought occurred to him that maybe he could sever the man's jugular vein if he bit down hard enough.

Avery didn't wait for the man to retrieve his knife and clamped his teeth around his neck where he left the cut. He felt the man grab his hair and attempt to pull him back, but Avery only bit down harder. He could taste the man's blood as it leaked around his lips. Again, it wasn't a lot to cause too much harm, encouraging Avery to tighten his teeth around the man's pale neck.

Seeing the man's shoulder pull back and hearing the bark behind him crumble, Avery realized the knife had been removed. He released the man's neck and moved away before he could be stabbed again. Swiftly, Avery pulled the scalpel out of his stomach, groaning from the exiting blade.

Avery turned to swing at the man but missed. The knife came close to his face again but, this time, Avery grabbed the man's hand. However, his own hand managed to slip and grip the blade of the knife. His tight grip made it easy for him to get cut as the man tried pulling it out of Avery's hand.

Another idea came to Avery then. This man needed his knife as Avery needed his scalpel during a fight. In order to wield the knife, you must have a steady hand. Instead of taking the weapon away, why not try to disable his hands?

Avery plunged his scalpel into the man's wrist, hearing a growl and loud groan slip through his gritted teeth. Obviously, this was affecting him greatly. Avery liked hearing him groan in pain. It let him know that the man could still suffer physically.

As he was twisting into the man's wrist, he felt something wrap around his waist. He was suddenly pulled back, his scalpel still embedded in the man's wrist. He also saw the man being pulled up into the air by something black wrapped around his waist. He knew what was happening once he realized it was a tendril. His master was here and most likely angry. The only times Slenderman brought out his tentacles was to either provoke fear, kill, or force the proxies to settle a disagreement (he'll basically keep you both suspended in the air until one of you gives in). The other times Avery had seen Slender use his tentacles was to pick up objects from across the room, or surprise the small children he lured into the woods.

Avery looked over to his right to see his master's blank face. He could tell the being was looking back at him. Slender often sent out this creeping feeling to humans that gave them the feeling of being watched. That's exactly what Avery was feeling. Being watched. Except, he can see who's watching him even if the creature itself had no eyes to see.

"Assistant. I see you've met my ally."

"Master, I can explain-"

"There's no need to explain Assistant. I've been watching the whole time."

"You have?"

"Yes. From the moment Jeff attacked you until now. I saw the whole thing."

This slightly relieved Avery. He at least won't get in trouble for attacking this man, whom Slenderman addressed as Jeff.

"Is that what you're calling me, Slendy? Your 'ally?'" Jeff asked in an almost exasperated tone. The teenager had never heard anyone call his master "Slendy." Perhaps they were much closer than mere allies?

"Yes, Jeff. We made an agreement that you wouldn't come into these woods unless I asked. You also don't pose much of a threat to me, my proxies, or my victims. So, that makes you an ally."

"That's such a boring term though. Why can't you just call me your 'friend?'"

"Because, Jeffery, I have no need for friends."

Avery listened intently as his master and Jeff carried on with why Jeff will never be addressed as Slenderman's friend. Jeff was so casual when talking to him that it intrigued Avery. No one could really talk to Slender in such a laid-back manner due to his intimidating presence. Although, it sounded like he was growing increasingly annoyed with Jeff. This was frightening because Avery had only heard Slenderman's aggravated tone a few times. It's always assumed by the proxies that the irritation in his voice can lead to violence and possibly death to the one that caused it to be there in the first place.

"Anyways," Slenderman brought his attention back to Avery. "Assistant, this is Jeff. You already know him from the newspapers as the infamous Jeff the Killer."

"Really?" Avery gasped in surprise at realizing who he'd been fighting the entire time. "You're really Jeff the Killer?"

"Yep," the scarred killer replied. Avery could tell by the casualness of his voice that he's used to being recognized. The amazing feeling of being a famous killer has obviously worn off.

"Oh my, what an honor. I never thought I'd end up meeting you in this lifetime."

"You can thank Slendy for that."

"Why?"

"Because I asked him to meet you here tonight," Slenderman stated simply. Avery looked over at him in amazement and wonder. Why had he done that for him?

Before Avery could ask, Slenderman went on to say, "Assistant, this fight wasn't random. It was planned to test your abilities and to see if you are truly worthy of being called a proxy. And..." Avery looked up at Slenderman in anticipation, hoping that he had proved himself worthy to his master. Nothing would satisfy him more than to be acknowledged by Slenderman that he was truly worthy. It would be one of the greatest achievements of his life. "... you passed."

"I did?"

"Yes, Assistant. Now, it's time to go home. Supper should be ready by the time Medic finishes tending to your wounds."

"Yes, sir."

Slenderman put them both down and lead the way to his home. Jeff had managed to pull Avery's scalpel out of his wrist and offered it back to him. Avery put the weapon back into his pocket as did Jeff with his knife. They all slowly made their way back home. Medic was a little annoyed that he had to fix their wounds before he could have supper, but they were all able to make it to the table before anyone asked questions.


	3. The Arrangement

The fight's over, Jeff and Avery are treated for their injuries, and now it's time to eat. But then Jeff proposes an idea that Avery wishes he could refuse.

Hope you guys enjoy!

* * *

Everyone settled into their seats as the final preparations for supper were set on the table. The table was fairly large to seat every proxy in the house plus Slenderman. There was also enough room for new proxies and the occasional guest (in this case, Jeff). Several were missing from the table, mainly due to an assignment Slender gave them or they had to "sleep" for a while.

Jeff seated himself next to Slender, where most guests would have to sit. All of his wounds except for his wrist were covered up by bandages. His wrist was stitched up and had a few layerings of gauze wrapped around it to staunch the bleeding. The sleeve of his hoodie covered most of it up. Medic had asked Jeff to keep his hoodie off so he wouldn't accidentally reopen any stitches. Jeff decided to leave it on, stating he's been in worse conditions than this.

Avery joined the table a few minutes after everyone had seated. He went upstairs after treating his wounds to change out of his torn, bloody clothes. He dressed in more casual attire: a red T-shirt and black jogging pants. He decided to walk around barefoot since meeting Jeff was his biggest priority tonight. Avery also had his own collection of cuts covered up by bandages. He needed a few stitches on his left side and arm where Jeff did significant damage. Other than that, he needed to watch for blood spotting on his neck, hand, and torso.

Since the majority of Slenderman's proxies are humans, they need human food in order to survive. Besides Slenderman, several other proxies relied on different resources to provide their bodies with nourishment. There were some that didn't even need food to live.

Slenderman lived off of the consumption of his victims. However, he didn't always eat in front of his proxies. Though they're expected to witness grotesque and often disturbing things, not everyone has the strongest of stomachs. Some of them can kill a person so brutally but gag at the site of their master chewing into an unfortunate victim's ribcage. Not to mention that, even after the body's been dead for several hours, things could get pretty messy at the dinner table. But, most often, Slender eats his victims shortly after he kills them. He mainly sits at the dinner table each night to make sure no one gets into a fight or causes any other type of disruption.

Everyone reaches across the table to get their portion of beef stew, vegetables, and drink before eating. Many engage in light conversation about their day or time spent "asleep." Several others preferred to sit in silence as they ate, refusing conversation or giving short answers to questions asked toward them. Jeff talked to Slender about various things not related to the fight but of his past victims. He seemed to be entertained by his own stories while Slender merely stared at him, possibly bored. Avery sat quietly and ate, wincing every once in a while from one of his cuts he received from Jeff.

It wasn't until he heard his name being said that he looked up at Jeff.

"Yes?" Avery asked calmly.

"You know? I forgot to mention this but you're pretty good with your scalpel."

Avery, not used to being complimented on his skills very often, took this as positive recognition from the scarred killer. But, as he tried to thank him, Jeff quickly added, "But you could do better."

Avery glared at Jeff, his eyes narrowing as the man's smirk widened.

"Excuse me?" Avery's voice lowered into a darker tone. Several proxies around him stopped what they were doing to stare down at him and Jeff. What was so amazing about this was that Jeff had actually offended Avery. Usually Avery would never care what anyone said about him, whether it be good or bad. To hear him sound upset to something like this was pretty shocking.

"Like I said," Jeff clarified, "You're good but you still need some work."

"Last time I checked, I almost tore your wrist up."

"Yes, but if you had more practice, you would've been able to overpower me within the first five or ten minutes of fighting me."

"You've had more experience than me. Of course it wouldn't be easy for me to do that."

"That's why I'm suggesting I train you to be better."

"Why would I-"

"Hold on Assistant," Slenderman interrupted. "What exactly do you have in mind, Jeff?"

"I just plan to teach him a few things, do a few practice battles with him. You know, kind of what you do but less violent."

Slenderman sat there in thought for a moment while Avery waited for his response. Avery was hoping Slenderman would reject this idea. If he really needed more training, Slenderman or a non-human proxy (such as the Rake) could give him extended training.

"Hmmmm, I see where you're going with this, Jeff. I don't think it's such a bad idea either."

If Avery had the freedom to express any negative thoughts on this matter, he would. But, since Slenderman thought it was a good idea, he had no room to argue. What Slender said would happen whether he liked it or not.

"I'll give you five months. Do you think you can handle that?"

"Pfft! Five months? I can probably whip him into shape within three months."

"Be more realistic, Jeff. We'll see how he is after five months."

"Okay. If you insist, Slendy."

"Assistant. Do you agree with these arrangements?" Of course, this was more of a statement than an actual question. Avery had no choice but to agree.

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Now, let's finish eating. Everyone needs their strength for tomorrow."

The proxies around Avery who overheard the conversation resumed to eating and picking up where their conversations left off. Avery drew his attention back to his bowl of stew, thinking over what his master had decided for him. He was not at all pleased about this arrangement. But, he knew Slenderman only did it because he knew what was best for Avery. Personally, he didn't think anything was wrong with his abilities. But, if he could gain something from this, then it may not be too bad.

_It's just for five months. Then Jeff will leave and we can all get on with our regular lives._

* * *

"Hey! Assistant! Time to start training!"

Avery looked over at Jeff from his desk. He was in the middle of doing his homework when Jeff barged in. He didn't knock; just slammed the door open and yelled.

Avery glared at him for a moment before turning back around.

"I've got homework. I can't do anything until this is finished."

"Did I ask what you were doing?"

"No. But-"

"Then get your ass outside so we can begin training!"

Avery turned around again to see Jeff smirking at him. He was enjoying having some authority over Avery despite only being a year or two older than him (Avery finally figured out Jeff was actually still a teenager). This was starting to irritate him. Not a day after meeting Jeff and already Avery was tired of him. He could only guess how the next five months were going to be like.

"No," Avery said dryly before turning back to his homework.

"I'm asking you one last time, Assistant, to stop what you're doing, and go outside so we can begin training!"

"And I told you I have homework! This is more important than your fucking training lesson!"

"Oh? Is that what you think?"

"Yes you son of a bitch!"

"Why don't you walk over here and say it to my face?"

Jeff was getting on Avery's last nerve when he pushed his chair back and got up.

_He wants me to fucking say it to his face, I'll fucking do it,_ Avery thought as he pulled out his scalpel and quickly walked up to him. He raised his scalpel and tried to stab Jeff but was stopped by the scarred teen's hand. Jeff's grip on his wrist was strong, making it a struggle for Avery to push any further.

"Lesson #1," Jeff smiled mischievously at Avery. "Don't let your anger get the best of you. As you can see..." Jeff pulled Avery's arm over his head to indicate his point. "You charged in without thinking and ended up stuck. A mistake like that could get you killed within less then a minute."

Avery narrowed his eyes in annoyance. He understood what Jeff meant by this bit of advice. He was just really annoyed that Jeff was smiling widely at him while saying this. It was almost as if he was saying that he was much better than Avery. That may be true since neither of them actually won the fight. However, he hated the arrogance the smile seemed to display.

Avery pulled his arm out of Jeff's grasp and put his scalpel back in his pocket. Jeff merely stood there and smirked at Avery's irritated face.

"Would it bother you if I finished my homework now?" Avery asked through gritted teeth.

"No. You can go back to that. I just came up here to give you your first lesson."

"Couldn't you have done this outside?"

"Yeah but..."

"But what?"

"I just wanted to see what would happen if I annoyed you hard enough."

Avery shot him another glare as his face heated up in anger.

"And by the looks of it," Jeff chuckled. "You get annoyed very easily."

"Get out!"

Avery pushed Jeff out of the doorway, slammed his door shut, and locked it. He didn't care if the killer stabbed his door or tried to saw an opening next to the knob, Avery was going to finish his homework in peace.

* * *

Avery stepped outside an hour later wearing a red hoodie, jeans, and a pair of brown sneakers. Since Jeff cut up his school clothes the night before, Avery decided to change into more casual attire. He didn't care if Jeff ripped up these clothes. As long as his school clothes were in good condition, he didn't mind what happened to his hoodies or blue jeans.

As Avery walked outside into the autumn air, he could see that Jeff was nowhere in sight. This annoyed him slightly since Jeff made it a huge deal to come out here in the first place.

_Perfect. I come outside, just as he asked, and he's not even out here. Damn you Jeff._

Avery decided to go inside to see if Jeff was somewhere in the house. As he turned to leave, he was suddenly tackled to the ground. He expected to see Masky when he opened his eyes but instead saw the scarred face of Jeff the Killer. He tried to push him off but Jeff quickly grabbed his wrists and pinned them to the ground above his head. Avery decided not to struggle, seeing as Jeff wasn't trying to attack him or cause any immediate threat.

"You should be more aware of your surroundings," Jeff stated with another smirk. Avery simply glared at him.

"Get off, Jeff." The young killer did as he was told and waited for Avery to stand. As the teenager was brushing off some dirt from his pants, he heard Jeff chuckle under his breath. This caused Avery to shoot him another glare and ask, "What's so funny now?"

"I was just thinking... Since you've been trained by Slendy all these years, I'd expect you to be aware of the things around you."

"I never really had to. Most often it's easier to hear or feel others approaching."

"Feel?"

"Do you not get that dreadful feeling when Master's around?"

"No. Not really."

"Huh... That's a little weird..."

"Why?"

"Because humans become sensitive in Master's presence. He instantly triggers fear in them and makes them feel like they're always being watched. You've never had that experience with him?"

"When we first met, I think."

Avery stared at Jeff in curiosity. Normally everyone could feel these things when Slenderman was around. The only exceptions were a few non-human proxies who gave off similar feelings or were immune to Slenderman's affects. Avery was beginning to think that there's more to Jeff than he let on.

"Now, setting all this chat aside," Jeff said, "You need to work on being aware of your surroundings. I know that you probably don't have to worry about this when you're with your victims, but you never know when any unnecessary company happens to come around when you're in the middle of something. So, I'm going to help you with that."

"I thought you were going to help me improve my skills with the scalpel."

"One thing at a time, Assistant. Besides, what would these skills prove to you if you're unable to hear an intruder sneaking up behind you?" Jeff quickly walks behind Avery, the teen taken aback by the sudden movement. Avery doesn't see Jeff pull out his knife but feels the cool blade roughly brush up against his throat.

"See?" Jeff asked, "Mistakes like these can be avoided with a simply exercise."

"And what's that?"

Jeff removed his knife, much to Avery's relief, and pulled out a blindfold. He wrapped the cloth around Avery's eyes and tied it tightly. He made sure there was no way for Avery to see past the blindfold before starting the exercise.

"Okay, Assistant, I'm going to sneak up on you and you have to rely on your hearing to detect my presence."

"You're not going to pull your knife on me, are you?"

"Not today. Since you couldn't even hear me coming, scaring you with a blade may be too much for you."

Avery could hear the mocking tone in his voice as he said this. He was really starting to get aggravated with Jeff. Everything the killer said irritated him. It didn't help that Jeff had to sound taunting whenever he talked to Avery. It could be how he normally speaks but it was beginning to annoy the young proxy.

"By the way," Jeff added, "That also means you can't attack me. So no scalpels right now."

"Fair enough," Avery sighed irritably. "So, are you just going to walk off and leave me alone to listen to your arrival?"

Avery waited to hear a response but received no reply. Only silence.

"Jeff?"

Again, it was quiet, leaving Avery to assume that Jeff had silently walked off. He also guessed that his question was correct, seeing as he was completely alone outside. He began to wonder what would happen if a fellow proxy walked by and he mistakened them for Jeff. He was still in front of the house so anyone could innocently come outside or return home to see Avery blindfolded.

_I should've asked him about that,_ Avery thought as he stood there awkwardly, waiting to hear Jeff approaching, _But, since I can't use my scalpel, the worst that could happen to anyone is me hitting them or grabbing their shirt. He didn't really explain what I had to do once I hear him._

Avery remained standing for about five minutes. It was awfully quiet minus the rustling of the trees and fallen leaves scraping across the ground. Avery understood Jeff wanted to show up when he least expected it, but he was growing anxious for his arrival. The constant silence didn't help his anticipation much. It only made the wait more uncomfortable.

Suddenly Avery felt a tap on his shoulder. He quickly turned around to grab at whoever had touched him, half expecting it to be Jeff, half expecting it to be a curious proxy. His hands grabbed at the air uselessly and he almost stumbled to the ground. He then felt a hand roughly push him forward, making him collapse into the dirt again. mischievous laughter told him who it was, though the push should've given it away. Greatly annoyed, Avery ripped the blindfold off to see Jeff laughing while staring at him. Normally, seeing him cackling with wide eyes would make Avery curious if not slightly suspicious (he couldn't recall seeing Jeff actually blink). Now, it just angered him.

"God, your face is priceless!" Jeff laughed hysterically. "What's funnier than that is I was behind you the whole time! And you didn't even realize it!"

Avery laid there and glared up at Jeff, his anger continuing to boil. He wanted to hit Jeff. No, he wanted to kill him. He wanted to give Jeff the most brutal death he could come up with while still making him suffer. Avery felt he deserved it. But, since Jeff seems to be close to Slenderman and Avery's new trainer, all he could do was bite the bullet and try to put up with him.

_This is going to be a long five months..._


	4. Avery Meets Jane

Avery begins to improve slightly but not to Jeff's liking. Then, to make things more interesting in Avery's already strange life, his school receives a new student. However, she seems quite strange to Avery. There's just something about her that doesn't feel right...

I hope you guys enjoy this!

* * *

For the next two weeks, Avery trained with Jeff. He'd come home from school, finish his homework, then go outside to see what the day's lesson would be. He was able to finally complete the exercise on relying on his hearing to detect Jeff's presence. It took him several days to master it which Avery felt pretty good about. However, Jeff felt that Avery should've had this completed in a shorter amount of time. This slightly irked the teen but he thought it was good that he at least accomplished this.

Soon after the small exercise, Jeff began teaching Avery different fighting techniques. Though the blade on a scalpel's much smaller than a knife's, they could still use similar techniques. Although, since Jeff was more experienced in fighting, he couldn't promise that Avery would leave training without a scratch. Most days he'd have a few cuts that didn't need immediate attention. There were a few times when Jeff would accidentally leave a deeper cut on Avery, forcing him to see Medic to fix it.

During the past two weeks, Avery began to learn a little bit about Jeff. He found out how Jeff ended up having the scars on his face and why he never seemed to blink. He simply stated that they were self-inflicted but added that they made him more attractive in his eyes. Though Avery wanted to know why Jeff would do this to himself, he didn't leave out the factor that Jeff could be mentally damaged (especially after that last statement). Again, this didn't really faze Avery. He lived with the fact that many humans are corrupted but are also sometimes led by common disorders and mental problems.

Avery had thought about asking Jeff how he became the killer he is today, but refrained from doing so. Despite being a murderer, Jeff's past may be too personal to bring up. That was usually the case with most of the human proxies. Many of them would rather not talk about how they got here because of painful or traumatic memories. Just like with Avery, several were forced apart from their families and sworn to never see them again. Most have learned to accept this while few others still hopelessly wish to contact them.

It was a very usual Tuesday morning for Avery as he took a seat in his Economics class. He was always early and tend to arrive before the other students got there. To pass the time, he pulled out another one of his books from home: _Of Mice and Men._

Slowly, his other classmates walked in and began talking amongst themselves. Though Avery would've much rather continue reading his book, he engaged in conversation with a few of the students he was forced to call his "friends." Their topics often bored him and he could care very less what was going on in their lives at the moment. But, he put on a kind expression and pretended to actually be interested in the conversation.

Soon the bell rang and any student who hadn't arrived yet quickly pushed through the door to get to their seat. As the last few teenagers made their way into the class, their teacher began roll call. As everyone waited for him to finish, there came a sudden knock at the door. The students turned their heads to see who it was, loving anything to delay their Economics period. Their teacher quietly stood up and walked over to answer the door. He remained there, speaking to someone for about a minute before opening the door wider to let a young girl in.

She was of average height and appeared to be around 16 or 17. Her skin was pale but had slight colour to it. Her hair was jet black and traveled down the middle of her back in delicate waves. Her eyes were too dark to tell what colour they were; Avery assumed brown. She wore basic clothes for the autumn season: a black hoodie with a white shirt underneath, a pair of dark grey skinny jeans, and a pair of converse of a lighter shade of grey. Her clothes fit her form very well, causing some of the boys in the room to stare at her in admiration. To say the least, she was quite a beautiful girl.

"Class," their teacher announced, "This is Jane. She'll be with us until the end of the year. You can all get acquainted with her later when class is over. Now, Jane, how about you sit in the desk behind Avery. Avery raise your hand."

Avery did as he was told and let Jane know where her assigned seat will be. He smiled at her, thinking that would be something his more innocent side would do. Jane responded with a soft smile, possibly out of shyness since Avery tried to portray himself as a nice guy. However, as Jane walked past him and sat down, he felt an odd aura around her. It wasn't very positive. He could only describe it as being a little sinister.

Throughout class, Avery felt that strange feeling from Jane. It wasn't enough to distract him but just enough to nag at him that something's up. This was very unusual because Avery could only tell the presence of supernatural entities. Humans don't let off the aura he's been feeling all through the class period.

Soon, the bell signalling the end of first period rings and everyone quickly files out of the class. Avery, as usual, slowly puts his things away, discretely keeping his eye on Jane as she passes his desk. She places a small piece of paper on his desk as she walks by, not turning around to give him a clever or suggestive look. Avery inwardly groaned as he lifted the paper.

_If this is some stupid note about Jane being attracted to me or wanting to fuck me, I swear to God, I'm going to torment her until she fucking snaps._

Though Avery isn't used to girls approaching him and professing their love to him, he finds it irritating when they tell him he's attractive or if they can hang out. However, as he reads the note, he sees that it's not exactly a straight forward confession. It simply reads:

_Meet me at your locker after school._

Avery crumbles it in his hand before throwing it in the trash bin on his way out of the class. She's either shy or doesn't want others around to hear what she has to say to him. Either way, he's dreading having to speak with this girl.

* * *

"Hey, Avery!" Trevor yelled as he caught up to his friend. "That new girl is standing by your locker. I think she's interested."

"You think so?" Avery feigned interest.

"Well, why else would a pretty girl like her be standing there nervously? The ones next to yours belong to Stephanie and that weirdo, James."

"Maybe that's who she's waiting for. And he's not that weird."

"No, he already left. And yes he is! He just sits through class all day staring into space."

"He could be day dreaming or something. It doesn't make him weird."

"I think he hears shit or something."

_Actually, Trevor, he does. He hears me from time to time around his house, in his room, behind him as he walks home at night from work. He's also seen me. Or, at least, my mask. But don't worry. You'll be regretting those words soon, Trevor._

"You're so quick to judge," Avery says, sounding a little disappointed.

"Yeah, but I can tell the new girl likes you."

"I don't know. Why would she be interested in me?"

"Come on, Avery. You're not bad-looking. Plus, you're nice. Girls like nice guys."

"I guess. I'll see you tomorrow, Trevor."

"See ya."

Trevor walks off to go home while Avery makes his way to his locker. There, Jane stood around, watching for Avery's arrival. He let out an aggravated sigh before approaching her.

_May as well get this over with and let her down easy._

"Hey!" Jane greeted him, "Avery, is it?"

"Yes. And your name is Jane, if I'm correct."

"You are. It's not a very hard name to forget."

"Yes, but you're new so some of us need to adjust to you being here."

"Oh, I'm sure we'll become well acquainted."

"Hmmmm?"

"Stop pretending as though you actually give a shit. I can see you don't want to be here."

Avery was slightly alarmed by this. So far, no one has been able to tell how he truly feels about a situation. He hasn't even known Jane for an entire day and already she can see that he'd rather be at home right now.

_Okay, there's something strange about this girl..._

"What are you talking about? You asked to see me so I came."

"Come on, Avery. I can see it in your eyes that you don't really care for me. In fact, I could even say you dislike me. Why is that?"

Avery was really surprised to hear this. He tried to hide this but could tell by Jane's smirk that she'd seen it. This really worried him. If she knew he was a fake, it would make his job slightly harder. He used these false expressions to lure his victims to him or Slenderman. If his classmates can't trust him, he may have to resort to taking them by force.

But, it also scared Avery that Jane might figure out his association to Slender. If she discovered this, he would have to kill her. She can't live after knowing who his master is. Keeping her alive would only prove to be troublesome.

Avery tried again to brush Jane's assumptions aside: "Jane, I believe it's been a long day for you. You must be quite tired and overwhelmed." He looked her in the eyes with as much malice as he could muster. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll be heading home. I'd suggest you do the same."

"You're in no position to be making suggestions to me."

"It was only a kind gesture. See you in class tomorrow."

Jane narrowed her eyes at him but looked more amused than angered. She let out a small chuckle before saying, "This isn't over, Avery."

Jane walked past him down the hall, disappearing through a door to the front lobby. Avery frowned deeply at the doors she exited through before rubbing his eyes in irritation. He put up a more pleasant face before going through the same doors and making his way to Rosswood Park.

* * *

When Avery returns home, he doesn't take his shoes off at the door or head straight to his room. He instead goes to Slenderman's room to inform him of his encounter with Jane. Though she could just be a regular girl who can read people extremely well, Avery felt that his master needed to know about her. Plus, the aura he felt when she was around was still very suspicious.

Avery knocked on the tall wooden door leading to his master's room. He waited to hear Slender give him permission to enter before turning the knob and going in.

Slenderman's room was one of the most grand places within the house. It was much bigger than the other bedrooms due to Slenderman's height. His bed was also unusually long from combining mattresses to match his length. His windows were fairly large but were mostly covered by black curtains most of the time. Opposite the bed on the left wall were several tall bookshelves on the right. In front of the shelves sat an antique Victorian couch with crimson cushions. In a way, Slenderman's room could be described as being half bedroom and half study.

Slender was sitting on his couch, reading a book when Avery knocked. No one ever came in without being told to. Not only was it disrespectful to Slender's privacy but there were usually consequences for barging in or snooping around inside while he's away.

"Yes, Assistant?" Slenderman acknowledged him, looking up from his book. "What is it?"

"Master, something happened at school today that I think you may need to be aware of."

"And what would that be?"

Avery explained to Slenderman about Jane and the odd aura he felt around her. He also told him about their conversation at his locker and how she may be on to him.

"Master, I'm really concerned that she may end up revealing me. Or worse. What if she discovers I'm working for you?"

"Don't think too hard on this matter. I'll take care of it. What was her name again?"

"She only said her name was Ja-"

Avery was interrupted by a loud bang behind him. He quickly turned around to see Jeff had slammed the door open, his usual smirk missing from his face.

"Hey Slendy! I wanted to talk to you about something!" Jeff then looked over at Avery as though he'd just noticed he was in the room too. "Oh, hey, Assistant."

Avery glared at the killer in annoyance as he usually did when seeing Jeff. Jeff quickly ignored Avery and brought his attention back to Slenderman. The young proxy turned back to face his master, unable to tell how the faceless creature felt about Jeff barging in.

"Jeff..." Slenderman said, irritation clear in his tone. "What have I told you about entering my room without permission?"

"Yeah, I know. But I need to tell you something."

"In a minute, Jeff. I'm talking to one of my proxies about something important."

"But my news is a pretty big deal too!"

"Just a moment. We're almost done here." Slender turned his attention back to Avery. "The girl's name again?"

"I couldn't get a last name but she goes by Jane."

"Wait!" Jeff cut in, "Did you say 'Jane?'"

Avery slowly turned his head towards Jeff to see he now wore a look of interest and aggravation. His face almost seemed to say, _Don't tell me what I think you're about to say._

"Yes, Jeff. I said her name was Jane."

"Son of a bitch..."

Avery raised an eyebrow at Jeff's reaction. Obviously, there was something wrong with coming in contact with this girl. Though Jeff and Avery could be thinking of two different girls named Jane, it was an interesting thought to the proxy that they might be the same person.

Jeff gave Avery a serious look as he asked, "What does she look like?"

Avery was slightly set off from this new expression. He'd never seen Jeff look so serious, let alone act like it. This was a little weird for Avery since he's grown so used to the Jeff that constantly annoyed him, and is so casual in front of Slender.

"Ummm, she's of average height with pale skin, long black hair, and wears dark colours."

"Damn it!"

"What?"

"That girl you described. She's been following me around and trying to kill me ever since I killed her parents!"

"Okay. If she's that big of a problem, why don't you just kill her?"

Jeff looked over at Avery as though he'd heard him say the most idiotic thing in the world.

"Don't you think I would've done that already? The bitch never fucking dies."

Avery remained quiet after that. Of course it wouldn't be hard for Jeff to kill her if it were on normal circumstances.

This also made Avery reconsider Jane's character. If she can't die, she's probably not human. Considering the brutality of Jeff's slayings, she shouldn't be alive by regular standards.

_But what would that make her?_ Avery thought to himself. _A vengeful spirit? Her motive supports this but wouldn't it be difficult to see her if she was a ghost? Maybe she's a demon. It would explain the weird aura around her and how she was able to see through me so quickly. But why would she come to my school and talk to me? Does she know I'm in contact with Jeff?_

As Avery thought over what Jane could be, he realized this could be more trouble than he thought. Not only would she most likely try to make it difficult for him to keep his cover in public, she might try to put Avery in the middle of her and Jeff's rivalry. Avery could really care less about their feud and hatred for each other. He didn't want to get involved in any of this. It would only concern him if Jane decided to screw everything up at school and show his classmates the heartless, apathetic person he is. Of course, it could be much worse if she ever figured out his master is Slenderman. Nonetheless, Avery had to realize his life just became a tad bit crazier than usual.

* * *

When coming up with Slenderman's room, I so wanted to have a fireplace between the bookshelves. But, I thought that'd be a little much. The shit that goes through my mind when coming up with someone's room.


	5. I Don't Need to be Saved by You!

To get their minds off Jane, Jeff and Avery decide to have a mock battle. Jeff gives Avery a little advice on how to do better and is able to use it well. However, Avery notices he feels a little... odd when Jeff pulls his knife on him. Then, as Avery's dealing with a victim, Jeff decides to intervene. Why did he do that exactly?

I'm very sorry I haven't updated in a while. I've been trying to get situated at school with my classes and haven't found a lot of motivation. Well, here's a slightly longer chapter for you guys! Happy Friday!

* * *

After Avery had informed Slender about Jane and learned she was Jeff's enemy, he and Jeff went outside to train. The young proxy didn't have homework tonight so he was free all afternoon. This was pretty convenient for both of them because they needed to let off some steam after hearing about Jane.

Once outside, Jeff briefly explains that they're going to do another mock fight. He also added that this could be good practice for Avery controlling his anger. They had yet to really go over how to do this, so now was one of the best times to try.

Jeff swung his knife towards Avery's chest, bearly nicking the boy's maroon sweater. Avery pulled his scalpel up to Jeff's arm but missed it by an inch. The scarred killer retaliated by pointing his knife at Avery's forearm and attempting to stab it. He was able to graze the skin before the boy could fully pull his arm away.

Avery, already irritated with what happened today, began to grow more annoyed from being cut. He had yet to put a scratch on Jeff before being injured by him. It was the same with every fight they had. Jeff would be the first to put Avery through pain, Avery would lash out because of it, and Jeff would end up winning the fight. Normally, he could take losing to the other proxies, especially if he knew their skills could outdo him. But, for some reason, he couldn't stand seeing Jeff win. Yes, he was obviously more experienced than Avery, but he hated losing to him.

Avery grabbed Jeff's wrist before the blade could come close to his jaw. He aimed his scalpel at Jeff's chest, intending to bury it in the paler teen's flesh. As he swung his weapon towards Jeff, the scarred teen suddenly punched him in the stomach. Avery abruptly stopped his attack to bend over and cough harshly. Jeff waited for Avery's coughing to cease before giving him some advice:

"This is what I mean when I say your anger gets the best of you. You run in full of rage, thinking that'll provide extra strength when it actually weakens you further. Try not to get angry at the situation but at _me_. Channel all that hate on me."

"Okay. I'll give it a try."

Avery regained his composure and prepared to attack again. This time, he concentrated on Jeff's mischievous expression, thinking back to all the taunting he'd done and tricks he's pulled. He remembered doing the small exercise at the beginning of their training, and how Jeff had messed with him by standing behind him the whole time. He thought about one of the jokes Jeff pulled on him, where he kept knocking on his door then ran away once Avery had made it to the door (it took about three times before Avery knew it was a joke, and another two until he figured out it was Jeff). To really get him going, Avery thought about a comment Jeff made that offended him greatly:

"Why did Slendy allow me to train such a useless proxy? You're so pathetic."

One thing you never argue against with Avery is his value as a proxy. There's a reason he's still alive and receiving orders. If he was such a waste to Slenderman, his master would've had him dead long before this. There was always a reason for Slender's actions and Avery's role in being a proxy meant there was something useful he could do for him.

All these thoughts in mind, Avery directed them at Jeff. He was going to slit the teen's throat. He was going to restrain him, make him defenseless, then sew that large smile of his back together. He was going to slam his head into a tree over and over again until his face became unrecognizable. But first, he was going to stab his ribs and, hopefully, touch one of the bones.

Avery ran at Jeff who prepared his knife in defense. As Avery drew closer, Jeff swung his knife at him, aiming for his collar-bone. Avery caught his arm before it could penetrate the cloth of his button up shirt, and planted his scalpel deep into Jeff's ribcage. His small blade didn't brush past any of the bones but it satisfied Avery that he was able to land a hit on Jeff.

The scarred killer smirked as a small amount of blood attempted to slide up his throat.

"Now that's better. Let's see more of that."

Jeff swiftly released his wrist from Avery's and pointed the knife at the young proxy's side. Out of reflex, Avery withdrew his scalpel and slashed at Jeff's face. He was able to cut him under the left side of his jaw, throwing Jeff off long enough to get away. The demented teenager only laughed lightly from Avery's attack.

For the next 15 minutes, their mock battle continued thrillingly. Although Avery was getting better at attacking Jeff, the older teen was still a lot better than him. Avery was just happy that Jeff's advice worked. He couldn't say that he wasn't enjoying himself, especially when he was able to get a reaction out of Jeff. Even though he still laughs or lets out a chuckle when hurt, Avery found it a little more bearable to hear compared to the first time they met. Needless to say, this afternoon's fight was taking their minds off Jane.

At the moment, Jeff was backing up while Avery advanced forward. The younger teen was thinking about his next move when he glanced down at Jeff's feet. The scarred killer had nearly backed up against a huge stick lying on the ground. One more step and he'd trip. It was too perfect but Avery decided to go with it anyways.

Avery lunged forward with his scalpel raised. As expected, Jeff took a quick step back onto the stick. It rolled out from beneath his foot, causing him to slip and fall backwards onto the leaf-covered ground. Avery took this opportunity to jump onto his legs and crawl up to his torso. Jeff tried to slash Avery with his knife but the young proxy caught his hand, scratching the part of the skin on his left hand that connected the thumb and index finger. When Jeff decided to punch Avery with his left hand, his opponent dodged it before stabbing his underarm. Avery then quickly grabbed Jeff's wrist and pinned it to the ground along with his right hand. Instead of joining them together, Avery kept the wrists apart but pressed his feet on them to prevent Jeff from pulling away.

Avery didn't follow the first piece of advice he gave Jeff when they first met. It wasn't because he was really into the fight but also because he needed to restrain Jeff's hands. He knew he wasn't strong enough to keep him down with his hands, so pressing his feet against the older teen's pale wrists was the next best thing.

Avery pulled the scalpel out of Jeff's underarm and raised it high into the air. Jeff stared back up at him with amused and unimpressed eyes.

It didn't hit the young proxy until now that he actually gained the upper hand on Jeff. He was able to get him to the ground and restrain him. And now he had his scalpel raised and pointed straight at Jeff's neck. All he had to do was keep it aimed at his throat and bring the weapon down. It would make a bit of a mess since the neck is a horrible spot to be cut in. It wouldn't provide much of a problem for Avery besides that Jeff would die, and Slender would be aggravated with him.

Strangely, as Avery gripped his weapon with his sweaty hand, he noticed that he was stalling. Usually, he wouldn't hesitate in harming or killing an individual. It made no sense to the young proxy. He couldn't explain why this was happening.

As though sensing Avery's confusion, Jeff coaxed him by saying, "Go ahead. Do it."

Avery stared down at him, for once, in horror. He'd never heard anyone ask him to kill them. He could understand if they wanted him to stab or hit them but not kill. And the way Jeff was looking at him with that same apathetic expression further unnerved Avery.

"Seriously," Jeff continued, "Just do it. I know you want to."

He was right. Avery wanted so much to watch Jeff's blood spew out of his neck like a fountain. He wanted that crimson liquid keeping him alive to drench his clothes, and cover his hands. However, he didn't have the desire to do it. Not anymore.

Whether it be because he'd disappoint Slenderman in killing Jeff or because he still wanted to know about this strange teenager, Avery withdrew his scalpel. He removed his feet from Jeff's hands but remained seated on the killer's waist.

"There are better ways to die, you know."

"I know but that's not why I asked you to stab me."

"Then what is it?"

"To show you can kill without mercy."

"I wasn't being merciful. I just don't want Master to be upset with me for causing your death."

"Trust me, Assistant. You won't be able to kill me."

"How so?"

"Let's just say, I'm not exactly human anymore."

"Really? Then what are you?"

Jeff chuckled at this, making Avery frown deeply in annoyance.

"Maybe I'll let you figure that out later."

"You're just going to make me keep guessing until I do, right?"

"Pretty much. One more thing I'd like to add, though."

"What?"

Jeff placed his hands beneath Avery's knees and pushed him backwards onto the ground. Before Avery could react, Jeff was already above him with the blade of his knife against Avery's neck. The young proxy's heart began to race as the knife was pressed further into his pale neck.

"Don't let your guard down."

It alarmed Avery whenever Jeff put his knife against his neck. It sent this odd chill down his spine and immediately sent his heart throbbing against his chest. He could also swear this caused his blood pressure to raise, mostly due to the sudden fear of feeling the cool blade brush against his throat.

Although, more recently, Avery began to notice something odd about his reaction to this. He had felt fear when Jeff threatened to slit his throat. It was a normal reaction seeing as Avery is human and humans are very fragile creatures. But, over the past week or so, a different feeling has swept over Avery whenever Jeff's knife was pressed up against his neck. It had the same physical reaction as fear but it didn't exactly make Avery feel afraid. Honestly, it made him feel excited. That sort of bothered Avery but he assumed it was from growing used to fighting with Jeff. The frequent mock battles may have grown on Avery to where Jeff's attacks do not scare him as much as they did in the beginning.

Jeff removed his knife and stood up, Avery only rising to a sitting position.

"Let's take a break," Jeff decided. "Then we'll start it over."

"Okay."

* * *

Four hours later, Avery was waiting behind a tree near McDonald's where a classmate of his worked. The boy's name was James. He was an average student with a fairly high GPA before Avery was assigned to deal with him. The teen had managed to spot Slenderman in a few photos while hiking along Rosswood's trails. He even showed them to a few of his friends who thought he photoshoped them. Since Avery was aware of this problem, James became his assignment. Ever since this event, James's grades faltered, he separated himself from his friends, and began to grow paranoid for no explicable reason.

Avery watched as James exited the restaurant and walked home. He followed after him but made sure he wasn't noticed. He'd learned through experience that one heavy footstep or harsh breath would give him away immediately. This was especially so for the person who's being watched. They're already paranoid enough by the lightest noises and images they see in the corner of their eyes. Seeing their tormentor again (if they haven't already) would send them running to the safest place they can find.

They were getting close to the entrance of Rosswood Park. Avery slipped off his mask and unzipped his hoodie before shoving the mask in his backpack. James heard the shuffling and quickly turned around to see his classmate. He jumped before realizing it wasn't the guy who's been following him for the past several months.

"God, Avery! You scared me!"

"I'm sorry," Avery said, pretending to sound slightly concerned, "I didn't mean to. Honest."

James let out a sigh of relief before saying, "I know. You just surprised me by coming out of nowhere."

"I'll try not to do it again."

As Avery let out a small chuckle, James gave him a suspicious look.

"Avery? What are you doing outside at this hour?"

"I'm just taking my evening jog."

"Isn't it a little late?"

"Maybe slightly."

"Won't your dad be concerned?"

"Yeah, he might be wondering where I am at the moment. I should probably head back home."

"You do that."

Both Avery and James turned around but James was the only one to begin leaving. Avery took off his backpack and shuffled around in it for a minute before calling James back. The already anxious teenager walked back to his classmate to see what he wanted.

"Yeah?"

"I think I dropped my house keys while jogging."

"Is your dad home?"

"No. He's still at work."

"Ummmmm... what about those cousins you're always talking about? Are any of them at your house?"

"Well, Tim's at work, Mary's visiting her relatives, Kevin's at a friend's house, and Karl's-"

"Okay, okay. Ugh... Do you know where you might have dropped them?"

Avery stood there, "thinking" for a moment before saying, "Well, I was on the trails through the majority of my jog."

"Are you sure? Nowhere else?"

"Not that I can think of." Avery looked over at James's worried face. He almost wanted to smirk at him because of his situation and how easy it's becoming to trap him. But he needed to keep up the innocent act for a little while longer; at least until they were on the trails.

"Is there something wrong?" Avery inquired, still feigning interest and concern for James.

"It's just... It's getting pretty dark. Maybe you should-"

"I've got a flashlight," Avery interrupted. He pulled out a long metal flashlight from his backpack and presented it to James. James stared at it, growing more uneasy with the idea of wandering Rosswood's trails at night.

"If you have a flashlight, Avery, then why don't you look for the keys, yourself?"

Avery lowered the flashlight and gave him a hesitant look. He appeared to be thinking of something to say to James, preparing to speak but then reluctantly becoming quiet again.

Finally, Avery replied to James, "I'm... actually... afraid of the trails... at night..."

He glanced up at James whose face flashed recognition at those words.

"You... are afraid of them too?"

"You're not going to laugh at me, are you?"

"No. I'm... actually afraid of them as well."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I've been trying to avoid them for a while now."

"Why?"

James hesitated before saying, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me."

There was more hesitation from James before he finally told Avery about his experience. He even mentioned "the guy in the mask" that's been following him ever since he accidentally took a picture of Slenderman. Through the whole story, Avery listened with boredom but held a false look of interest until James had finished.

"It sounds crazy, doesn't it?" the withering teen asked.

"No. I believe you James."

"You-You do?"

"Yeah. How could you make up a story like that? It sounds a bit too credible to be made up."

James let out another sigh of relief.

"At least someone believes me. Everyone else thinks I'm crazy."

"Well, crazy or not, I still need to get my keys."

Avery clutched the flashlight in his hand and walked through the front entrance to Rosswood Park. James quickly followed after with a horrified look on his face.

"You're going in there even after I told you what happened to me? You could end up stalked by that creep!"

"I'm sorry, but I have to do this. Yes, going into the woods at night scares me to no end, but it frightens me more when my dad yells at me for losing the house keys again."

"Well, you're not going in there alone."

"I thought you refused to go near the trails."

"That doesn't mean I'm going to let you wander in there by yourself. I don't want you to end up like me."

"So, you'll go with me?"

"Yeah. But if we don't find your keys within ten minutes, we're leaving."

"All right."

They both walked past the entrance and made their way to the rear of the park. The woods looked ominous and uninviting as the teens came closer. To Avery, the appearance of the forest was the very opposite of how James viewed it. Avery found it quite relaxing while James became very weary of the leafless branches.

The two searched for the nonexistent keys for about five minutes until Avery decided now was time to make his move. He took out his mask and held it to his chest out of view from James's eyes.

"Hey! I found them!"

"Really? Thank goodness. Now we can leave this-"

James stopped once Avery had turned around. On the teenager's face was the black and red mask that haunted his dreams. It appeared to mock James's stupidity for following his deceiving classmate with the wide red grin. He should've known there was something odd about the way Avery was acting. Why would anyone go out of their way to get a pair of house keys? Who goes out jogging at 7:00 at night? Who in their right mind would even go into the woods at night, with or without hearing James's story?

"Y-You..." James trailed off. Avery remained silent and reached into his pocket to feel for his scalpel. It's cool handle slid across Avery's finger in a familiar way. So many lives were ended with its blade. So much blood was spilt on its stainless steel surface.

"Why are you doing this to me?"

Avery, again, refused to answer. He didn't expect James to know the answer. He wouldn't understand anyways.

"What did I ever do to you?!"

That was a question Avery could answer but held his tongue. There was no use explaining his hatred to James. There was no use in telling him his purpose for torturing him. Telling him would only cause problems Avery didn't need. Now that he'd revealed himself to James, there was nothing more to do than to end his misery.

Avery pulled out his scalpel and lunged at James. The teenager jumped back but was cut across the jaw. He let out a yelp before pressing his hand against his face to ease the pain. Avery stabbed him a few times as he backed James up against a tree. James didn't have a chance at fighting back and was beginning to give up. That was until he looked down and saw Avery's flashlight.

_Maybe, if I give it a good swing, I can knock Avery out. Or at least knock him back for a few minutes._

James grabbed at the flashlight and swung it towards Avery's head. He hit the proxy's skull hard, forcing him to stagger back. Avery clutched the left side of his head and let out a deep groan as the pain pulsed through his skull.

While Avery was trying to recover from the attack, James had gotten up with the flashlight still clutched in his hand. Though he was weak from Avery stabbing him, he figured he'd at least throw a few hits before going down. Then he could say he didn't go down without a struggle.

James walked over to Avery, who was still holding his head, and raised the flashlight high in the air. As he was bringing it down to the back of Avery's neck, he felt a sharp pain in his back. It soon went to his chest and began to sting relentlessly. He looked down just as the knife exited his body. Someone else was after him too.

Before James could turn around to see who had stabbed him, the knife re-entered him again. He felt the knife penetrate him numerous times, he lost count of how many wounds littered his body. Before long, he grew too tired to even think. He felt his body slip away as the knife stabbed through him a final time.

Avery looked up as soon as he heard James hit the ground. The boy was covered in blood and stab wounds that didn't belong to Avery. His eyes traveled up the black dress pants and white hoodie that clothed a familiar smiling face. Avery's headache grew worse as he saw Jeff staring down at him.

"You fucking idiot!" Avery exclaimed out of spite. "He was _my_ assignment! _My_ job! How dare you kill him as though he was your victim! I spent nearly half a fucking year stalking him! Watching him slowly shrink away until he was just a walking doll! And you come around and kill him after I had waited patiently to do it myself!"

"Well sorry if I decided to help you out before that kid bludgeoned you to death!"

"I don't need your help and I certainly don't need to be saved by you!"

"I'll keep that in mind the next time one of your victims decide to fight back."

"There won't be a 'next time!' Tonight was just an off night!"

"Whatever you say, Assistant. Whatever you say."

Jeff walked past Avery onto the trails that would lead to the tunnel. He glared at the teen before putting the flashlight in his backpack and following after him. He kept a fair distance from Jeff as they made their way to the tunnel and back to Slender's house. Avery didn't want to admit it but, somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew Jeff was right. If he hadn't intervened, Avery may have left with more than just a headache. Of course, it would take a while before he admitted this to himself, and much longer before he even began to admit this to Jeff.

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If you know who Avery's referring to when he's talking about his "cousins," you get a high five :D

Sorry if it sounds a little rushed at certain parts. I was kind of in a hurry when writing this. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this! Have a nice Friday everyone!


	6. Suspicions

Almost a week since James was killed, everyone's talking about how he suddenly "disappeared." While the police search for him, Avery is being bugged by the new (yet very suspicious) student known as Jane. She's finally able to get a moment alone with him to reveal that she knows Avery has something to do with James going missing. What else could go wrong?

Again, I'm sorry it's taken me this long to post this chapter. I thank all of those who favourited and encouraged me to continue. So, here's the chapter you guys have been waiting for. I hope you all like it. Enjoy!

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_Damn Jeff... I swear, if he does that again, I won't need any extra training from him._

Almost a week had gone by and Avery was still upset with Jeff. He was so mad that all his time was wasted on tormenting James only to have someone else end his life. Of course, if it weren't for him intervening, Avery may have gotten away with a head fracture or not at all. He had almost accepted this fact but had no intention of letting Jeff know he was right.

At school, no one seemed to notice James's absence until almost a week later. He had become so distant with everyone that not many of his classmates felt the need to speak up about him being gone.

It was a Thursday morning when every teacher in each classroom announced that James was missing. His mother told police that he never came home but his boss at McDonalds reported seeing him leave work after his shift ended. So, the only lead they have is that James was taken some time after he left work.

Avery never mentioned meeting up with his former classmate on an early evening "jog." It would make him look extremely suspicious, especially if he told the police what they had discussed before going into the forest. He also had no intention of mentioning the "strange guy" that stalked James up until his disappearance. That would make his and the other proxies' jobs harder because they'd be looking for any strange guy wearing a hoodie and mask.

It didn't unnerve Avery when he heard the police might even look on the trails in Rosswood Park for James. Even though he and Jeff had made a good mess by stabbing and cutting him up, there's very little trace of James's remains. Whenever a proxy "finishes an assignment," Slenderman is usually close by to "get rid of" the evidence. This is why people tend to "disappear" around the park from time to time.

Despite Avery making it appear that he was not involved in James's disappearance, things haven't exactly been going easy for him at school. Jane has been subtly leaving little hints that she wishes to continue discussing a few things with Avery. At first, he simply passed her up on her "offers" and explained he was very busy. Whenever she would ask for details, he replied that he has homework, needs to study, or his dad needed him to do something that afternoon. Soon, she became less obvious by asking about some of Avery's more recent cuts. He passed this off by saying his cousins were messing around and accidentally injured him.

Avery knew she wasn't buying a single lie he was saying. He could see it in her eyes as they looked at him in disbelief. In a way, they almost appeared as though they were also laughing. This aggravated Avery as much as it unnerved him. It didn't comfort him knowing that she could tell any of his classmates about him. Sure, they could simply not believe _her_ because she's a new student and may be just begging for attention by making accusations at Avery. But, when it came to his classmates, or anyone in this town, Avery was paranoid that they'd second guess him in just the slightest. If they couldn't trust him, he couldn't do his job easily.

Avery pushed these thoughts to the back as his mind as his Chemistry teacher called on him to answer a question. The teenager answered it smoothly as though it wasn't at all challenging. His teacher smiled approvingly at him before moving on with the lesson.

Avery jot down some notes from the power point and let his mind wander once more. This time, however, his thoughts centered around Jeff. He was wondering what they'll be doing during training today and what Jeff was going to teach him this time. Ever since he learned to use his anger better in their mock battles, Avery found his training sessions to be a great stress reliever. Recently, he found himself looking forward to training with Jeff.

Avery's relationship with Jeff has slightly improved, if one could say that. Avery was slowly beginning to grow less annoyed with him with each passing day. It wasn't very significant to him. Some proxies did nothing but get on Avery's nerves in their free time. He just had to adapt and get used to them and their obnoxious nature. That's how things were going between Avery and Jeff; he was growing accustomed to the new house guest and his ways.

His thoughts were interrupted by the final bell ringing. As usual, his classmates quickly walked out of the room like bees out of their hive. He put his books and notes in his backpack before leaving the room as well. If this were any regular day, he'd meet up with Trevor and listen to the boy's boring, meaningless stories until they departed to their homes. But, as is becoming routine nowadays, Jane would be waiting for him at his locker once nearly all of the students had left. Because of this, some have speculated that something was going on between Avery and Jane. Of course, even if Avery denied it, his classmates' immaturity would think otherwise.

Despite Avery having to meet up with Jane almost every afternoon, Trevor would still walk with him until they came to his locker. Avery had a sneaking suspicion that Trevor liked her. It didn't really alarm him as much as it nagged him. Trevor seemed to understand that the girl (or whatever she is) was out of his league and didn't show much interest in him. He was also unaware of how suspicious she was like many of Avery's classmates.

After half-heartedly commenting on Trevor's plans for the weekend, they arrived at Avery's locker to see an all too familiar sight. Although, this time, Jane was chatting with another one of Avery's "friends," Stephanie. She was a quiet girl who seemed shy and a little reserved. Her strawberry blonde hair was long and often pulled back into ponytails on either side of her head. Like most girls in the school, she dressed appropriately yet stylishly for the cold season, sometimes wearing a necklace and a pair of modest earrings to accessorize.

Stephanie had always had a slight crush on Avery. He had been aware of this since the start of their freshman year in high school. He'd also been informed by his male friends who had heard this from either Stephanie herself or her friends whom they've dated. Of course, this never mattered to Avery. He could never return her feelings and wouldn't dare try to fake it. It was too much effort for him to pretend to be attracted to her and say that he loved her. He didn't even want to think about one day having to kiss or have sex with her. Leaving Stephanie with her unrequited feelings was better for Avery.

When Avery and Trevor had walked up to the lockers, they caught the last bit of Jane and Stephanie's conversation. They seemed to be talking about the weekend as well. Jane noticed the boys standing there and immediately turned her attention over to them.

"Oh, hello guys," she said casually. Both Trevor and Avery replied with a simple "hello," Trevor sounding a little more uplifting than Avery.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your conversation," Avery said apologetically. "But I have to get to my locker."

"Of course," Jane replied with a small smirk.

As Avery was putting the right numbers into the combination, Jane began speaking again:

"So, it's pretty weird, isn't it? That boy suddenly disappearing like that."

Avery froze for a moment before looking over at Jane. Thankfully, he wasn't the only one, his friends staring at her in shock. Jane wore a look of concern but her eyes said a different story. They were laughing again like they always did when looking at Avery.

It was Stephanie who broke the momentary silence:

"Yeah. It doesn't feel real, you know? I mean, it just seems like he'd walk out from behind a corner and go straight to his locker. Like, it was some kind of joke or something..."

"Yeah," Avery agreed with her. "It's still pretty shocking to think about it."

"Well, what do you think happened to him?"

Avery looked over at Jane, her eyes staring straight into his. This time, they looked back at him in accusation. This alarmed him along with the thought that Jane could somehow know that he had something to do with James disappearing.

_No... This can't be... How would she know? She wasn't there! I know there's no way she could've seen me!_

"I don't know," Avery answered as calmly as he could. "That's what the police are trying to figure out, right?"

"Yeah, I guess..."

"Well," Stephanie cut in. "His mom was saying how weird he was acting before this. Maybe he did run away but the police are over thinking it?"

"That's an interesting thought. But, then, why would he want to run away? What would cause him to want to leave this place?"

"Could we please stop talking about this already?" Everyone looked over at Trevor who was looking the other way to avoid their stares. It was obvious that he was uncomfortable with this discussion about James going missing. Avery assumed it was due to the things he'd said about the teenager before he disappeared. But, then again, most of the students in their grade would be feeling pretty guilty too. If given different circumstances, Avery would've enjoyed seeing Trevor this way.

"I agree," Avery sided with his "friend." "Let's stop talking about this."

With that, Avery put his books away, closed his locker and walked with his friends out the door. Jane headed in the opposite direction down the hall, possibly just to wander or avoid Avery for the moment.

Honestly, Avery was rather looking forward to the weekend. He'd be within the barrier around his house the whole time, meaning he won't be bothered by any humans unless Slender sent him out to do an assignment. That'll be enough peace and quiet until he has to return to school on Monday.

They walked together until they had to separate into their dividing streets. Avery quietly made his way to the park, trying to enjoy the silence. It wouldn't be long until the police decided to investigate the trails. Though that was a bothersome thought in itself, Avery had other ways of getting around on the trails to get to the barrier. It would take him longer than usual to get home but it was worth avoiding any unnecessary questions.

There weren't too many people around the park today. There were mostly just people walking around the front area, the back being more vacant.

Avery made his way to the back part of Rosswood Park, eager to go home and rest. Of course, Fate had other ideas in mind as he spotted long, wavy, black locks on a bench to his left. Walking closer, hoping it wasn't who he thought it would be, Avery saw the pale face that grew the dark hair along with her form-fitting clothes. Jane looked up at him with a smile, seeming to taunt him.

Avery froze, surprised (shocked would've been a better word) to see her of all people here in the park. This wasn't a coincidence; Jane knew he would come through here. But, of course, she had to act as though this was a chance encounter with a classmate, whom she didn't expect to be at the park today.

"Why, hello, Avery," Jane said casually. "Fancy meeting you here."

Not sure whether to act just as casual or still be surprised, Avery let out a "Yeah..."

"Would you like to have a seat? It's a lovely day to be outside. Maybe have a nice little chat?"

Jane pat the empty spot to her right, inviting Avery to sit. But, even Avery could tell by her aura, that this wasn't an invitation. It was a command.

Cautiously, he walked over and sat next to her. Part of him knew this was a bad idea and that Jane may try to do something to ruin his social reputation. Although, another part figured he may as well hear what she has to say since he did try to avoid her following their last conversation together.

"You can cut the act now," Jane said as she leaned back into the bench. "None of our classmates are around to hear us so you don't have to pretend to be nice or anything."

Avery let out a sigh before letting his face relax. His mouth deepened into a frown and his eyebrows furrowed in slight aggravation. Jane looked at him with another smirk and a chuckle.

"On second thought, you look better when you're smiling."

Avery remained silent and waited for her to finish laughing. After a moment of her going quiet, he decided to ask a question he's been wanting to ask for a while:

"What do you want?"

Again, Jane let out a small chuckle, pleased that she can finally get somewhere with him.

"I thought you'd never ask." Her face suddenly became less playful and more serious. She still wore a small smile but it wasn't used to taunt Avery in any way this time. It seemed to be her natural expression, sort of like with Jeff's scars.

"I wanted to talk to you about James suddenly going missing."

Avery felt his stomach tighten after hearing this.

_Of course she wanted to talk about that. Why else would she "so conveniently" be here?_

"Why?" was all Avery could come up with to ask her.

"I think you know the answer to that, Avery."

He looked up at Jane to see her staring at him with the same accusing look in her eyes. Begrudgingly, he realized there was no point in lying his way out of this situation. He also couldn't pretend to not understand where she's going with this.

"You think I have some involvement in his disappearance."

"More or less. Would you mind telling me where he is?"

"I don't think there's any point in that."

"Oh, there is. I'm sure you can understand that."

"You don't even want to know what happened to him."

"Just the usual business, right?"

Avery's nerves shot up. He began to get really nervous at this point. She had basically implied that this wasn't the first time he had to "deal" with someone. This made him wonder how much she already knew about him, which was hopefully not too much. Either way, this was becoming much worse on his part. Depending on how much information she had on Avery, life at school could get pretty difficult soon.

As Avery was preparing to retort something back at her, Jane suddenly demanded, "Just tell me where Jeff is."

Avery looked up at her, confused for a moment. He thought back to what she'd been asking him the whole time and realized she wasn't talking about where James was. She's been trying to find out where Jeff was... through Avery.

_You have got to be kidding me. There is no way I'm getting in between these two and their fucking hate for each other._

"I don't know a Jeff. Sorry."

"Don't give me that shit. I know you're in contact with him."

"I believe you misunderstand. If I say I don't know this guy you call Jeff, then I don't know him."

Jane stared at him intently before smirking mischievously and chuckling.

"All right. Fine. Be that way."

She stood up, turned to leave, but then stopped herself and faced Avery.

"One word of advice I wish to give you in the future, Avery: don't go to sleep. You won't wake up."

She walked off in the direction to the entrance of the park, leaving Avery to sit there and wonder what she meant by that. Besides the first night he met Jeff, Avery has heard him say "go to sleep" many times, sometimes for no real reason. He began to realize that it was a phrase Jeff often enjoyed saying, mostly before he was about to kill someone (Jeff told him that part). Jane telling him this was probably a warning to be aware of or stay away from Jeff.

_Kind of can't do that if he's training me, can I? She's really starting to get annoying._

Avery stood up and continued his walk to the trails. He knew he had to tell Jeff about his talk with Jane. This wasn't really a concern for Slenderman since this was between Jeff and Jane.

_This is going to be another interesting conversation with him..._

* * *

That afternoon, Avery was putting his homework away when he heard a knock at his door. A little curious, he walked over to see who needed him. To his surprise, it was Jeff. Usually, the scarred killer would just slam his door open if he wanted anything.

"Ugh, hey, Jeff. What do you need?"

"Here."

Avery hadn't noticed until now that Jeff had his right hand behind his back. When he pulled it back in front of him, he revealed that he was holding a book. Its size was small but held many pages, making it a lengthy read. Jeff offered the book to Avery, the younger teen accepting it. He glanced down at the cover to see that the title read _1984_.

Avery looked up at Jeff and asked, "Why did you-"

"Well, when we first met, I ended up stabbing your first book. So, I thought I'd save you the wasted time of scraping up some money and buy it for you."

"Why?"

"You're always busy, I never have anything to do. Just accept something without questioning it."

"Okay. Thanks."

Jeff walked off as Avery closed his door. He never would've expected Jeff to do something like this. Even though he was right about Avery's loaded schedule, he could've done this on his own. But, he decided to go along with what Jeff had said and just accept the gift.

_Wait... gift...? Is this what it is...?_


	7. A Very Strange Illness

After Avery accepted the book from Jeff, he began to wonder what the scarred killer's meaning behind it was. Unsure of what to make of it, his partner Medic decides to give him some suggestions. Although, Avery doesn't exactly like what he's hearing.

Here's a faster update than you were probably expecting. I hope you guys enjoy it!

* * *

The next morning was a Saturday and Avery was asked to help out Medic in his room. The elder proxy became a little too busy to organize some files as well as take inventory on what supplies he needed. So, he asked Avery to give him a hand so he can get caught up. Avery agreed to it since he had nothing else to do besides his training later on that day.

While Medic sorted through the files, Avery took inventory and cleaned the medical tools. Normally, he wouldn't mind being given such mindless tasks but, today, he needed something to make him concentrate. His mind now freely wandered and constantly went back to the night before.

_What's the point in buying a book just because he ruined my first one? I mean, he could just be acting friendly or something. But, Jeff's not a friendly person. There's not a nice bone in his body! So, why would he do this? Maybe I'm just overthinking it but it's strange to me._

"Something bothering you, Assistant?"

Avery looked up from sorting the cleaned medical utensils to see his partner staring at him. The much older man wore a blank expression but Avery knew it meant he was concerned, maybe even a little worried. Unlike with his classmates, Avery didn't feel the need to lie to the other proxies. But, it was only Medic whom he trusted more than the others and listened to besides Slenderman.

"A little... incident happened last night," Avery explained.

"Anything that needs to be resolved immediately?"

"No. It wasn't really that significant."

"If so then why is it troubling you?"

"It's about Jeff, actually."

"Strange. I thought the two of you were starting to get along. Did he upset you?"

"Well, no. It's not him who's bothering me, rather it's what he did."

"Do you mind telling me what happened? I'm afraid I'm not following."

"Jeff... bought me a book..."

"That's all? That's what you've been upset about?"

"Well, don't you think it's a little odd? We're not that close but he decides to do something like that?"

"Maybe he wanted to get on your good side for once."

"Why would he do that? Wouldn't someone who's _nice _give people gifts for no particular reason?"

Medic became quiet and stared at Avery in disbelief. This didn't comfort him in any way. This expression always made him feel ignorant and unsure of his words.

"A gift?" Medic asked, sounding just as skeptical as his look. "You think it's a gift?"

"Well... What do you think?"

"I think you sound like an over-reacting teenage girl."

"I'm serious, Medic."

His partner let out a sigh before saying, "Okay, say it was a gift. Why does it matter to you? It may not be often but sometimes I or another proxy give you gifts."

"But I lived with all of you for almost a year and a half before any of you even acknowledged me. I've only known Jeff for about three or four weeks."

"Okay... Tell me this: Why do you think Jeff gave it to you?"

Avery grew quiet and thought about what Medic had asked. He wasn't exactly sure what to think of it. He was a little wary about accepting the gift, thinking it would turn out to be some sort of joke. That's mostly what Jeff did to him when they weren't training. To Avery, it was as though Jeff had nothing better to do than to pull jokes on him and annoy him.

However, the book was just a regular little book. Avery had checked by opening it up and flipping it upside down to see if anything would fall out. He also skimmed a few pages to see if Jeff had written anything obscene or ridiculous inside. There was absolutely nothing wrong with it. That's what bothered Avery.

There was a part of Avery that assumed the gift had some meaning to it. Maybe it was Jeff's way of making a truce and deciding to be friends with the young proxy. But, Avery kept reminding himself that Jeff's not the kind of person who just _asks_ to be friends. He's seen the scarred up killer go up to other proxies and make the same jokes or pull similar pranks that he'd done to Avery. Everyone else seemed to find him amusing or enjoyable to be around. It was a matter of either you could simply get along with him or be the brunt of his teasing.

The other part of Avery had established that maybe Jeff simply wanted to return the book to the teenager. But, seeing as the spine was stabbed, it was in paperback form, and Avery didn't retrieve it until the next morning, the little book was ruined. So, maybe Jeff felt like doing one good thing for the socially difficult proxy.

As Avery sat there, thinking on Medic's question, his partner decided to speak up with his own thoughts. Of course, Avery didn't really expect this to ever come out of Medic's mouth, let alone cross his mind.

"You think Jeff likes you, don't you?"

Avery stared up at the elder man with a look of both shock and confusion.

"Define 'like,'" was all Avery could think to say to the question.

"'Like' as in feelings of admiration towards another. Am I correct?"

Avery's cheeks lit up in a light blush, something he rarely does unless extremely angry. Although, from what Medic could see, the boy was more flushed with the accusation rather than upset that Medic would even propose that.

"Wh-What? Why would I-? Why would he-? No! Just, no! There's no way in Hell he would- That's just ridiculous!"

"Why?"

"Because he's a serial killer. Let's also not forget that he's a lunatic."

"So? Serial killers can love. People with psychological problems can have feelings for another. Have you ever heard of Bonnie and Clyde?"

"Yes, but they're different. They only did those things because they wanted to."

"I don't see how Jeff's any different. He likes killing. If I'm not mistaken, you enjoy it too."

"Jeff's a free man. Plus, I'm not all that sure what his back story is. And you know full well that I don't kill just because I simply enjoy it. Master gives me orders to follow that I must obey. Besides, I have my own reasons for deciding when someone's life ends."

"Besides that they're humans and humans are bad and must be wiped off the face of the Earth for there to be harmony?"

Avery shot an annoyed glance towards Medic's amused grin. His cheeks were still red but this could be more from anger now.

"Don't patronize me, Medic. It's not my fault I have such strong hatred towards them."

"I know."

"Anyways, that's just silly. Why would Jeff have feelings for me? We almost tried to kill each other when we first met."

"That's something you'll have to ask him. If it's true, that is."

"I still think you're wrong about all of this."

"All right..."

Avery decided to go back to his current task and finish cleaning up Medic's tools. He picked up a pair of tweezers and began wiping it down when Medic decided to speak again:

"It's because you like him, don't you?"

Avery accidentally dropped the tweezers and looked back at Medic again. The elder proxy couldn't tell if his partner was shocked, angry or embarrassed; his face was almost as red as his jumper.

Avery seemed to struggle with his words for a moment before saying, "Now I know you're full of it. That's not possible."

"And why not?"

Avery bent down to pick the tweezers up and set them aside to be washed again. He then held up a set of prongs and began to wipe them clean.

"There's no way I could have such feelings. Especially for someone as annoying as him."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

They both grew quiet after this. Medic didn't feel like pointing out that Avery was still human, therefore, he could express a desire to be with someone. But, the boy was near all of his medical supplies and had a scalpel of his own. Medic wasn't in the mood to defend himself against a crazed teenager with a vendetta against humans, and still trying to deal with his own hormones. He would let his stubborn partner have the final say in this conversation. Being a teenager once himself, he knew that Avery had to really think about this before considering that, maybe, Medic was onto something.

* * *

The weekend rolled around and ended a little sooner than Avery had liked. He wasn't looking forward to sitting in first period with Jane right behind him. Her aura was starting to bother him less but he still didn't enjoy her presence. He didn't really like much about her from the start and even less so after realizing she's trying to locate Jeff through him. Besides, there was still so much he didn't know about her yet.

Although, after Avery confided in Medic, he didn't really feel very comfortable in the house with Jeff roaming around. Never in his life did he find so much discomfort with another person. He hadn't felt this uneasy since Slenderman brought him home or when he first began creating his fasçade in front of his classmates.

He couldn't quite understand why he was feeling this way. He blamed Medic for putting the idea in his head that the killer could possibly have feelings for him. Avery knew himself that Jeff was incapable of holding such feelings. Even so, just like with Stephanie, he could never return them.

But, as the week made its way back to the weekend, Avery began to notice an odd change about himself. He ignored the changes, thinking he's overworking himself with school work, training, and Slenderman's orders. "It's only stress," he told himself.

As the next week carried on, he blamed his stress on Jane's incessant pestering to talk to him and having to pretend that he cared for James's safe return home (which will obviously will never come). But, when Avery sat down and thought about it, he couldn't say that Jane or pretending to go along with the theory that James disappeared were bothering him all that badly. In fact, he couldn't really say his school work, training sessions, or Slenderman's orders were getting to him either. When it came to him, Avery was a little annoyed to realize only one thing was causing this. Or, should he say, only one person: Jeff the Killer.

The changes that afflicted Avery mostly happened in Jeff's presence. Every time they were in contact it happened. When they did their mock battles, it wouldn't leave Avery. Sometimes they occurred while Avery was sitting across Jeff at the dinner table, becoming so bothersome that it almost made Avery lose his appetite.

And the changes that troubled Avery?

For no real reason, his heart would begin pounding in his chest when he so much as saw Jeff. It began to beat even more once they were closer together or training with each other. This concerned Avery because he never remembered his heart beating so hard before.

Another change that occurred in Avery was a sudden wave of hot flashes. His face would instantly become warm despite the temperatures around him steadily decreasing. Due to Avery's face being so white, it was easily noticeable and sometimes made Jeff ask if he needed a break from training. It wasn't that he needed to calm down or rest; he had the strange reaction to grow warm all of a sudden. But, this only happened when he made direct eye-contact or accidentally bumped into Jeff.

Avery began to grow nervous in Jeff's presence as well. It escalated to the point where he tried to avoid making eye-contact with Jeff unless it was necessary. When the older teen would speak, it caused Avery's other afflictions to start up. His hot flashes would burn his face and his heartbeat hammered uncontrollably against his ribcage, he was sure Jeff could hear it. But, the scarred killer never seemed to notice anything and carried on with his part of the conversation or continued his day like any other. Sometimes, Avery could barely speak because of this.

It was a Thursday when Avery decided to figure out what's wrong with him. He went into the library during his study hall period and logged onto a computer to find out all he could about these changes. At first, he wasn't sure what to look for and stared at the Google logo for a few minutes. Eventually, he decided to type in his problems to see what would show up. At first, he used simple terms such as "frequent heart beating," "sudden warm feeling," and "sudden nervousness." Nothing exactly relevant came up that would help him. For curiosity's sake, he added "around a certain person" to see what would come up. Most of the articles that appeared were stories about people finding love or sharing their experiences with love-interests. Again, Avery saw this as irrelevant.

It didn't occur to Avery until then that maybe what's wrong with him can be described by medical terms. So, he typed in terms such as "erratic heartbeat," "hot flashes" and "high blood-pressure." He couldn't think of a term for nervousness but decided to concentrate on the first two symptoms. Of course, the only articles that came up from that search had to do with signs that one was going to have a heart-attack or stroke. This slightly made sense to Avery but he didn't feel it helped him in anyway. If he were to have some kind of heart condition, it would've either taken him within the past two weeks or would occur when he was much older. They were possible but didn't solve his problem.

Before Avery could try to reword his symptoms, the bell signaling the end of his study period rang. He felt like he didn't get anywhere by trying to research this on his own. He considered going to Medic to see what he could determine from Avery's words.

It wasn't until Friday evening when Avery was able to talk with Medic. He ended up having more homework than he originally expected and, since it wasn't a school night, he and Jeff had to train until dinner started. After waiting for Medic to finish eating, Avery approached him about having medical problems and to see what he thought about them.

In Medic's office, Avery explained everything to him including that the symptoms only started up when he was around Jeff. Medic listened patiently and waited for Avery to finish before deciding to do some tests. He checked Avery's heartbeat, blood-pressure, and temperature and compared them between his regular condition to the state he's in when next to Jeff.

Finally, Medic came to a conclusion:

"You're in love, Assistant."

Avery stared at his partner, not exactly sure what to think or say to this.

"Are you sure?"

"There's nothing physically wrong with you. You're just experiencing a moment in your young life where you start to have romantic feelings for another. It's all a part of growing up."

"Could you redo the tests? Maybe you misdiagnosed. I could have a weird medical condition in my family that I'm completely unaware of. That could be the answer for all we know."

"Assistant, I've been practicing medicine before your parents even thought about having you. I know what I'm doing."

"But... that just can't be right."

"It is. Deal with it."

"I-I can't just 'deal with it.' What kind of proxy am I if I give in to such feelings? What would be the point of keeping me around if I fall for this humanly temptation? I would only be a weakling in Master's eyes. I would fail to serve my purpose as his proxy if I admit to actually being in love."

"Avery? Do you really think love is weakness?"

Most proxies never used Avery's name unless they were either close to him (Masky, Hoodie, a few members from the Collective) or they were being serious with him (in this case, Medic). Slenderman had stopped calling him "Avery" once he was given the name "Assistant." Avery thought it meant that calling a proxy by their birth given name would be considered personal to Slenderman. It would almost be as though there was intimacy between master and slave just by using a name other than the one given to them to symbolize Slenderman's control over them.

Avery stared over at Medic, hate almost evident in his eyes. He seemed to be reflecting on a bad memory from his past. It was safe to assume it had something to do with his life before meeting Slenderman. Not to say that everyone's safe from bad experiences once Slenderman decides to use them as his proxies (quite the opposite, actually). But, for some, life wasn't too great before being selected by their master. For Avery, he had issues with his older brother who constantly made fun of and berated him for fun. Though that seems like a very little thing, moments like that are a lot more powerful to an impressionable 10-year-old.

"Love never kept my brother from bullying me. Love couldn't save me from becoming Master's proxy. Love certainly won't do much for me now that I've rejected my own kind."

"Sometimes, Avery, love can do more than most give it credit for. Yes, it can weaken people but it can also strengthen them. It all depends on how you use it. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"... Yes."

Avery lowered his head, still trying to figure out how to deal with these new feelings. It hasn't interfered with his training but he had a feeling it could cause slight difficulties between him and Jeff. He'd never considered having these feelings or what to do if he ever thought about being in a relationship. He spent years concentrating on being a good proxy and doing well in school that dating and relationships rarely, if ever, crossed his mind. There was simply no time for them and very little point to dedicating so much effort into supporting one.

Medic studied Avery's dejected appearance before an idea flashed into his mind. He stood up, walked over to his desk and pulled out one of the drawers. Inside, sitting on top of clean, unwritten test papers for future medical exams, was a thick, hardcover book. Medic always knew that, when in doubt, Avery will comfort himself with his books. He was always open to recommendations from Medic when it came to books, so the elder proxy had confidence in this plan.

"Avery, I'm going to give you some reading material to look over. I think it'll help you understand your feelings more."

Avery looked up, a small indication that he had hope in solving this dilemma written on his face. If he knew anything about his partner, it was that Medic always knew the best medicine to cure his patients. He had complete faith that Medic knew what he was doing.

"Really? You have just the thing?"

"I think you'll find it an... interesting read."

At first, Avery didn't like the way Medic said the word "interesting." But, still clinging to the only hope he had, he accepted the book that Medic placed before him. The cover of the book had a strange, smoky design in different shades of purple. In the very center between the title and author's name was a black oval, acting as a sort of frame for the first image that drew Avery's attention: a bright, red rose with thorns along the stem, and a few petals dropping from the flower. A feminine hand delicately held the rose between two fingers, the nails long and healthy, the skin pale and ageless. Avery disregarded the author's name to see the bold letters of the title. Avery immediately frowned and furrowed his brows.

"'The Witch's Apprentice?' How is a romance novel supposed to help me?"

"Just give it a try, Avery. Read the whole thing through and you'll understand. The characters kind of remind me of you and Jeff."

"I really hope you're serious about this."

"This may seem completely irrelevant to you but I think you'll find some answers regarding your situation."

"Ugh... Thanks, I guess. One thing, though..."

Avery removed the paper covering to the book and found that there was nothing but a black surface. Though many things don't embarrass Avery, carrying around an adult romance novel through the house or to school was out of the question. He'd rather be seen with a Stephan King book than have his classmates (as well as housemates) catch him reading anything along the lines of Twilight or Dear John.

Medic took the paper covering and let Avery return to his room. The young proxy was beginning to have serious doubts about this "medicine." He avoided reading books solely based on romance because they were dull and meaningless to him. But, he knew Medic had good intentions especially when it came to his partner. He would read the book and see what Medic meant by it helping him. He was probably going to regret subjecting his eyes to such atrocious literature. But, if it somehow shined light onto his problem, maybe it won't be too bad of a read.

* * *

Just to let you know, _The Witch's Apprentice_ isn't an actual book. It's just here for the story so don't try to look for it. Although, if it happens to be an actual novel, I was completely unaware of this.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this! Have a nice day everyone!


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